Nothing wrong in promoting Hindi, other Indian languages in place of English: C T Ravi
New Delhi, Oct 13: BJP leader C T Ravi on Thursday said there is nothing wrong in encouraging Hindi and regional languages instead of English and claimed that the Narendra Modi-led government has been promoting mother tongues in different parts of the country.
The party's national general secretary, who hails from Karnataka and is in charge of the BJP's affairs in Tamil Nadu, refuted criticism from opposition leaders Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Tamil Nadu CM M K Stalin that the Centre was imposing Hindi on non-Hindi speaking states.
He said people should come out of this "colonial mindset" and linked such a mentality to the use of English.
"There is nothing wrong in getting rid of this mindset and behaving like free individuals," Ravi added.
Vijayan had recently taken exception to the recommendations of a parliamentary panel which suggested that the medium of instruction in central technical and non-technical higher education institutes such as IITs in Hindi-speaking states should be Hindi and in the respective local languages elsewhere.
It further said the use of English should be made optional.
The Kerala CM had sought Prime Minister Modi's intervention in the matter.
Ravi said the recommendations promote Hindi in place of English but not in the place of regional languages such as Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada or Marathi.
If a leader writes for the "pride of Malayalam or the pride of Tamil", our party welcomes it but if he writes in favour of English, then this is not appropriate, he said.
The BJP leader said leaders like Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, too, supported the promotion of Hindi and regional languages.
He also noted that the National Education Policy 2020 finalised by the Centre envisages promotion of Hindi and all other Indian languages.
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Conspiracy afoot to 'tarnish' image of Dharmasthala: Deputy CM DK Shivakumar
Bengaluru, Aug 14 (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Thursday said there was a “conspiracy” to tarnish the image of Dharmasthala.
His comments come amid an ongoing investigation by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) into serious allegations of mass burials in the revered temple town in Dakshina Kannada district.
“A conspiracy is being hatched to destroy hundreds of years of legacy. It is not correct to tarnish someone just like that. It has all happened due to one complainant,” he said.
Noting that some Congress MLAs have called for action against those involved in the slander campaign at the legislature party meeting, he said, “ I have told them that action must be taken against those who are indulging in a slander campaign. The CM has also said that action must be taken against such people.”
“I have information on this case. Religious feelings should not be hurt in any manner. Culprits must be punished,” he told reporters, according to a release from his office.
Responding to a question, Shivakumar said the Congress party will not allow the image of any religious place to be tarnished.
“We see everyone equally when it comes to religion,” he added.
The SIT, formed by the state government, is probing claims of mass murder, rape, and mass burials in Dharmasthala over the past two decades.
The complainant, a former sanitation worker whose identity has not been revealed, alleged that between 1995 and 2014 he was forced to handle bodies—including women and minors—and that some showed signs of sexual assault. He has given a statement before a magistrate.
As part of the probe, the SIT has been conducting exhumations at multiple locations identified by the complainant-witness in the forested areas along the banks of the Netravathi River in Dharmasthala, where some skeletal remains have been found at two sites so far.
